Hinge accessory



VINVENTOR.

lls N E. h

D ec. 15, 1953 A. M p. HESS v HINGE ACCESSORY Filed Aug. so, 1948 Patented Dec. 15, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HINGE ACCESSORY Alexander Mcl). Hess, 'JamaicmN.

Application August 30, 19.48, .Serial No. 416,830

l Ola'im. 1

This invention relates to a domestic appliance which may be employed in combination with and in support of articles of household convenience such as collapsible barricades or screens indoorways between rooms, clothes drying racks, and the like in a house or an apartment.

More particularly the invention comprises clasp-like apparatus for attaching to the existing hinges of doors between rooms in free swingable relationship therewith and cooperating apparatus in combination with and supporting collapsible barricades suitable for confining youngsters to a given room, screens for use in doors between living quarters and foyers, clothes drying racks in the less visible spaces of rooms, and for other purposes which may become apparent from the description and the accompanying drawings.

An object of the invention is to provide means of the character described which are adapted to be easily and quickly attached to and detached from the hinges of doors in a home thus avoiding screwing fixtures into the door facings with the defacing effect thereupon which is ordinarily at tendant to the attaching of such fixtures to the door facings by means of screws or nails.

Another object of the invention is the provision of means which may be attached to'and in free swingable relationship with the hinges of doors and means which may be employed for the securing the resultingly swingable attendant apparatus in a closed position by engaging with the openings of striking plates which are already installed on opposite door facings with which the latches of doors normally engage.

Another object of the invention is the provision of means for easily and quickly attaching to the hinges of doors which means are adapted to support clothes drying racks, and the like.

These and other objects and novel features of the invention may be more completely understood from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings which illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention in whichf Fig. 1 is a plan View of a clasp assembly adapted to be attached to the bottom of a pin in an upper hinge and the top of a pin in a lower hinge.

Fig. 2 is a view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 with the clasp or thumb screw, spring, and mounting pin shown in full view.

Fig. 3 is a plan View of another embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a view taken on the line i-4 of Fig. 3 with the thumb screws and the pin or rod shown in full View.

Fig. 5 is a view in full elevation of a collapsible barricade or gate in combination with-and utilizing the embodiment of the invention shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a view in full elevation of a clothes drying rack utilizing the embodiment shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4.

Referring now to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 a, member I preferably made of a suitable synthetic, metal, or alloy adapted to fit over the lower ball of an upper hinge on a door, and a member 2 also made of a suitable synthetic, metal, or alloy adapted to fit over the upper ball of a lower hinge together with a mounting pin or shaft 3 of any desirable length which length is to be regulated by the distance between companion supporting hinges, have a compression or coil spring 4 serving in conjunction therewith so as to insure continuous securable contact of the members I and 2 with the hinges. The shaft 3 may be made of wood or a synthetic material if desirable so that it may be cut to the proper length in the home to suit the distance between the particular hinges to which it is to be applied. A clasp or thumb screw 5 is provided which will serve to secure the member I with the lower ball of a hinge. One or more slidable lug members 6 may be provided for supporting other objects as will be fully described hereinafter. In lieu of the shaft 3, spring 4, and thumb set-screw 5, as shown, the interior walls of the members i and 2 may be threaded opposite hand respectively for the two members and the ends of the shaft 3 may be threaded so as to screw into the members l and 2, and being of proper length may be unscrewed slightly therefrom so as to force the members i and 2 apart and thus into securing position with the hinge balls with which they are adapted to engage in free rotatable or swingable relationship.

Referring now to Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 members H preferably made of a suitable synthetic, metal, or alloy are adapted to fit over the upper ball of an upper hinge and the lower ball of a lower hinge in free rotatable or swingable relationship and are provided with thumb screws H. which are adapted to bear against a pin or rod 1 3 thus providing means of securing the members I! to the hinges. The pin or rod is may be of any suitable length so as to engage with both hinge clasp members II on both the upper and lower hinges.

Fig. 5 illustrates the application of a collapsible gate 30 to the hinges of a door opening between rooms, or which may be at the top of a stairway, in which the rotatable or swingable clasp members of Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 or Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 may be used. In this application the lug members 6 may be moved freely up and down the shaft member 3 or the pin or rod I3 whichever embodiment is used as the gate is opened or closed. The gate is provided with a snap member 31 which is adapted to engage with the striking plate of a door latch for keeping the gate in a closed position when it is swung freely shut. As a matter of choice the lugs 6 may be provided with thumb screws such as 12 for the purpose of securing the lugs 6 to the shaft 3 or pin or rod 13, so as to aid in preventing the gate from being swung open.

Fig. 6 illustrates the application of a clothes drying rack comprising horizontal members 2i and vertical members 22 and which may be supported by the clasp assembly shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2. As may be seen this arrangement may be employed when a door is fully closed or partially opened.

Obviously minor changes can be made to my invention as herein set forth without altering its spirit and scope, therefore it is desired that it be limited only by the foregoing description and the appended claim.

I claim:

In the combination of a household appliance which consists of a collapsible gate adapted to span a door opening and whose supporting rotatable lug members are adapted to slide up and down upon a mounting shaft, a mounting element for said gate comprising upper and lower contact members each adapted to fit over the ball portion of a door hinge, a mounting shaft fitting into said contact members, a compression spring in said upper contact member pressing against the upper end of said shaft for securing said contact members to said door hinge, and a thumb-screw seated in said upper contact member for locking said shaft.

ALEXANDER McD. HESS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 457,933 Brill Aug. 18, 1891 462,319 Loehner et a1 Nov. 3, 1891 1,336,593 Sifieet Apr. 13, 1920 1,564,703 Nichols Dec. 8, 1925 1,618,328 Eberle Feb. 22, 1927 1,795,871 Lehmann Mar. 10, 1931 2,112,399 Graham Mar. 29, 1938 2,128,596 Redin Aug. 30, 1938 

